The digital deal of the day is over at Amazon today is Death Race 2, which is available for rental for only $.99.

This deal is valid only for today, Wednesday, February 2, 2011, until midnight PST. Once you activate the rental through Amazon’s Video On Demand service, you’ll have access to the movie for 48 hours. If you’re interested in purchasing the digital version, the cost is $14.99.

Also, if you’d like to own a physical copy of the movie, the Blu-ray is available for 27.99 while the DVD is $18.49. Both editions are part of Amazon’s “Buy This DVD and Watch it Instantly” program: you get the film as a free digital rental you can watch immediately when your purchase the physical copy.

Universal Pictures and director Roel Reiné (The Marine 2, The Lost Tribe) have begun principle photography on Death Race 2, the new prequel to Paul W.S. Anderson’s 2008, Death Race.

The film started shooting on February 13th in Cape Town, South Africa and will become a member of Universal Studios Home Entertainment’s DVD Originals line, which just means straight to video.

The original was actually a remake of the 1975 film, Death Race 2000. The story is similar to that of Escape from New York, and it takes place in a dystopian future where a prison inmate is offered his freedom if he takes on the persona of Frankenstein — a legendary racer who recently perished — and can win five Death Races. These races are put on by the corporations who own the prisons, and they are aired as a futuristic reality show, which brings more viewers than any other show can ever dream of, and an unbelievable amount of income.